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Business Networking Blog

On the BBC Radio 4 programme, The Bottom Line, recently Evan Davis was talking to Sir Terry Leahy in front of an audience at his old school. Sir Terry is the former Tesco CEO and author of Management in 10 Words. The conversation covered many topics, and one that struck me particularly was his view of the key to success in business.

He said the way to get on in business is to give more than you take in any situation. Whether as part of any team, any meeting and anything else you do. He said that as a leader, it is not so much about what you do personally, but what you cause other people to do. How you make them feel better about themselves, the business, and build their confidence and trust. This is the key to success and the building blocks are that generosity. You have to give more than you take.

I wholeheartedly agree and it is the key to success in networking too!

One of the biggest challenges you face as a professional or entrepreneur is finding an effective route to market. Many successful professionals and entrepreneurs find Business Networking is an essential part of their go to market strategy. Others are frustrated with the time and money they spend without results.

If you have invested time and money networking without a good return don't despair. In this short video my NRG colleague, Martin Davies, explains how to turn things around.

Have you ever heard someone say, "I tried networking, but it did not work"?

You may even have said it yourself!

Many people are advised to try networking when they want to find new business and that may be the root of the problem for someone who says it did not work. They try it with that idea in mind and as a result may be sending out all the wrong signals. Along with the advice to try networking they were probably told it is not about finding business directly. It is about relationships, selling through the room etc, etc. They then attend an event and get invited to pitch either to a group or to everyone who asks, "What do you do?".

For someone with no experience of networking this is all very confusing and, unintentionally, they probably sound as if they are trying to sell (however softly) and that puts people off. It is not surprising when their reaction is that the whole thing does not work.

The best thing is to invite people to think about it differently in the first place. At NRG we believe that you need to build a network to be able to deliver what you do, to support you, and to uncover the business opportunities that suit you. If you start with that premise then the way you go about your networking will subtly change and that change will deliver results.

So the next time someone asks for some advice on networking please share these tips with them.

1. Networking is about making friends in business. Friends help and support each other.

2. The right mindset is 'We thinking' and not 'I thinking'. What can we do together?

3. Even if you are networking for business you are not selling to people directly. Your pitch needs to be around how you can help each others contacts with their problems.

4. It is also about support. It can be lonely in business and it is great to have likeminded people to share the ups and downs with.

5. Your Network is your biggest asset. Take care to nurture the connections you make and the friendships you have made along the way.

6. Manage who is in your Network. You only have the capacity for a finite number of relationships. There are those you interact with all of the time. Some you just need to maintain the relationships and some you are getting to know. There will be people you do not want in your Network too.

7. Find where to meet the right people. It is really time efficient to regularly attend groups and events with the people in your Network and the ones you are looking to add.

8. Have a keep in touch strategy. Once you identify who is in your network then work out how best to regularly keep in touch. You may want to invest in some software to help.

9. The real value in your Network comes from building trust. This is your investment in Social Capital.

10. Become an Advocate for others. Freely connect other people and ideas and you will attract others who will follow your example and do the same for you and others.

Recently I attended a networking event and listened to about 20 people pitch their business. The common thread was that they all pitched in exactly the same way as they would if we were prospects. The problem with that is that networking events are not full of your prospects. They are full of people like you. How do you feel when people constantly pitch at you?

The people I know who get the most out of networking focus on building a trusted network of contacts. A group of friends in business. People who provide support, advice, a sounding board when needed and introductions to other friends when they need the services of someone like you. They know that doesn't happen overnight. You have to really get to know people first which takes time so you need a strategy to keep in touch. Joining a networking group is one way of ensuring you meet people regularly to build that all important trust.

I host a couple of NRG Networking Groups and the most frequent comment I get from guests is how refreshing it is to meet a group of people who are genuinely interested in you rather than just pitching at you. This isn't accidental. It's a combination of attracting people who agree with our view of networking and then providing a facilitating environment to accelerate the trust building process by focusing on interactions that will do just that.

The next time you're at a networking event why not say to people that the reason you're there is not to find customers, but to find people who are interested in helping each other grow business in mutually supportive ways.

Last week I attended a Google for Work event, 'Reimagining fast growth'. Google were presenting research commissioned from Deloitte on how the cloud enables rapid growth in SMBs (small and medium sized businesses). Not surprisingly the research found that the fastest growing small businesses make extensive use of cloud technologies. You can find the research report at this link.

In addition to Google and Deloitte were speakers with real life experience of starting and growing businesses. Their stories brought the ideas to life.

I really liked the way that Peter Briffett, COO of Yplan, spoke about flipping the marketing funnel. In the past people looked at marketing as a funnel with lots of prospects in at the top with the aim of customers dropping out at the bottom. He said now you have to focus on each customer and deliver something good they are compelled to share.

As Peter said, "There is nothing more meaningful than friends talking to friends".

It's worth remembering that because it's at the heart of effective business networking.

In this guest blog Nigel Temple shares his expertise on marketing through communities.

Marketing Through Communities

Established communities can provide you with numerous networking opportunities – if you take the right approach.

What are your objectives?

Begin by thinking about your marketing objectives. For example, is brand awareness important to you? If it is, then you may wish to consider sponsoring community events or a community website (or part thereof). This can be remarkably inexpensive.

Alternatively, are you trying to find customers ‘within the room’ or introducers (i.e. bank managers and accountants, in the case of an IFA). If so, then you will have to ‘show up’ on a regular basis.

Think about your target market segments. The communities you decide to join should either include members of these segments or people who can reach and influence them. Your choices will be guided by your business model and whether you are trying to reach business people or consumers.

Choose the right communities

Communities come in many different forms. Online examples include LinkedIn and Facebook. Locally, there are business groups such as The FSB (Federation of Small Businesses) and Chambers of Commerce. There are professional and industry groups and networking organisations such as NRG Business Networks. In addition, there are lobbying, special interest groups and local groups within towns and cities.

By the way, direct selling within communities is always seen as a bad thing. The best approach is to take your time and build relationships. Remember that community members will talk about you – so it is important to act with integrity at all times.

Social skills

Be helpful and don’t worry if your acts of kindness don’t appear to generate direct results (as you can’t hear the positive word of mouth which you are generating).

Position yourself as an expert

Once you are established within a community, look for opportunities to demonstrate your expertise. Depending on the nature of the community, these might include giving talks, writing articles and blogs and providing professional advice. Your objective is to become known as the go-to person within your field and to become a thought leader.

Multiple touch points

Once you have connected with someone within one community, connect with them elsewhere, in order to create multiple touch points. For example, look them up on LinkedIn and put in a connection request.

Networking professionals

Find the ‘professional networkers’ who can introduce you to relevant contacts. This type of person always shows up, typically has a huge number of contacts and wants to help. Phone them and / or offer to meet.

Create your own network?

Finally, it may be worthwhile for you to create your own network. I have done this and it is called The Marketing Compass, a community of business owners who want to learn about marketing. We have our own social media website www.marketingcompass.co.uk where members ask marketing questions. This approach is not for the faint hearted! However, it will help you to stand out from the crowd.

Nigel Temple

Nigel is a long time supporter of NRG and is a marketing consultant, speaker and author. He is the Founder of The Marketing Compass, which provides impartial marketing advice and direction to thousands of business owners.